Category: Richmond, VA

  • A Saturday Morning Tribute

    19 faithful came out on this lovely Saturday morning to help Spit paid tribute to his grandmother who went to be with the Lord on Monday.

    This is how it went down:

    Mosey to the circle next to the amphitheater to give the explanation for the theme today YHC’ stated that his grandmother (Faye Beach) lived to be 97 was born in the year 1919

    COP

    • 19 SSH IC
    • 19 Don Quixotes IC (Swirly Style)
    • 19 Gas Pumps IC
    • 19 Dolly’s IC
    • 19 Merkins IC
    • Arm Circles

    The Running Of Love Hill

    From gate to gate. First partner runs to the gate at the bottom of the hill then back then switch. Other partner completes an exercise. The following were the exercise.

    • Lunges
    • Broad Jume Burpees
    • Polar Bears

    Mosey down the road in front of the Pump House

    Faye 1,2,3 (aka Dora 1,2,3)

    One partner runs up the pipeline trail and back then switch. As partner complete the following:

    • 97 Burpees
    • 197 Jump Squats
    • 297 LBC’s

    Mosey up the trail to the Rusty Cages

    OYO complete 19 Burp-ups

    Mosey to the SF for COT, number-rama and name-a-rama, then YHC took us out. 

    Moleskin

    As stated YHC’s grandmother has passed on Monday. Later Monday night YHC had noticed that no one had signed up to Q Dogpile for this week. This was a rare thing for the Q at Dogpile to be open so late. YHC saw it as a sign to sign up and pay tribute to his grandmother.

    She was an amazing women who always served others before herself.

    Love Hill brought a new challenge to the PAX. Completing the entire road (gate to gate). It was noticed by the members of the PAX during the first lunges that is was going to take a while (about half of the workout)

    This morning gave the PAX a new opportunity to see parts of the AO not normally seen. Today being the last day before daylight savings, the AO was lit up by the morning sun earlier than normal. Most of the PAX to a moment to enjoy if they could.

    The rusty cage was cut short do to time. While moseying back to the SF, Fudd yelled out to YHC “Spit is your other grandmother still alive?”. In response “Yep!”, Fudd “Oh great (sarcsatically)!”

    YHC would like to thank all of F3RVA for the thoughts and prayers this week. You guys have made this feel like a true brotherhood.

    Announcements

    • Good luck to the PAX members running in the Belmonte 25 and 50k today!
    • Ashcreek 5K (in Mechanicsville) has an F3 team!  Rumor has it The Carpenter is working on getting us a booth hook up as well, but he has not finalized the deal with YHC yet.  http://www.ashcreek5k.com/. Sign up under F3RVA.

    SPIT ON THAT!!

  • Peer Pressure Payback – The Creek

    15 PAX showed up to make it happen at The Creek in the gloom.  Too many stayed in the fart sack for such a tolerable morning temp.  Wild Thing succumed to peer pressure from Mud Face and The Carpenter (who never showed due to shame at uVA’s loss) and took on his VQ.

    Carmen San Diego showed up from afar to support Gumbo who was the original Q.  No Gumbo for Carmen San Diego but he joined in none-the-less.

    Workout went as follows:

    Mosey to side lot and circle up.  60 SSH’s on Abacus’ cadence, 60 LBC’s on Hardywood’s cadence, 60 Hillbillys on Spit’s creative cadence and 30 Freddy Mercuries on WT’s Cadence.

    Next the PAX paired fast with slow.  Start with 10 Merkins and 20 LBC’s then run around the church.  Same drill at all four corners but fasts go counter-clockwise and slows go clockwise.  When partners meet do 10 booyah merkins and reverse direction back to start.  Rinse and repeat 4 times.

    Mudface took us to the picnic tables for a ladder.  30 wide derkins + 10 step ups + choice of 25 KB Swings or run the field.  25 WD’s + 15 step ups + choice. 20 WD’s + 20 Step ups + choice.

    Mosey to the Flag and Fire Circle using KB.  Row with each arm and pass to next PAX around the circle.

    Number-rama, Name-o-rama, announcements and Wild Thing took us out.  Peace.

    Not a bad try for a VQ.  May do it again.  The in-shape-PAX got a great workout and the others pushed hard.  Great morning and sunrise.  It does not get better than that as a start to a Friday.

     

  • Alternate Dimension

    9 runners converged on a final run before the onset of winter, again.

    Reverse Carillon routes – 4, 5, 6 mile variety.

    Wilson took us out.

    NMS:

    YHC was perplexed when he showed up this morning to an empty parking lot with only Flatline’s truck in the lot.  Taking Swirly’s parking spot, YHC was able to get a commanding view of the AO as runners began arriving.  At first, it was very odd to not see the usual suspects for Friday’s run.  Was I in an alternate dimension in which I had Swirly’s parking spot and no Pax?  I was soon reminded of Belmonte this weekend.  Good luck to the men running this weekend!  You will represent well.

    It was great to see the new regulars come out in force today.  There are still two months remaining for the perpetual Friday Lockjaw Q, so come back out next week too.

    Honeymoon, thanks for pushing me on the 5 mile pace.  We had a No tools sighting as he biked past us for some brief conversation and sped off.

    Great work today!  Way to push it.

  • The Facts of Life…

    A lucky 13 descended upon Mary to demonstrate their strength and stamina.  This is more or less what transpired…

    COP: DQ’s, SSH, Squats (6 count…NEVER AGAIN), Merkins, LBC’s

    Lazy Doras: (100 Merkins, 200 LBC’s, 300 J-Squats).  Alternating:   10 Merkins, 20 LBC’s, 25 J-Squats (or 30 if you are partnered with TYA)

    Triple Check:  1 partner completes 25 WWII’s. While waiting for partner 1, other 2 wheelbarrow up and down steps to school – performing a Merkin at each step.

    Jacob’s Ladder (Construct a Burpee). Traverse courts..starting with 1 Merkin, 1 J-Squat, and 1 Burpee. Continue until at 5 Burpees.

    Ring of Fire (Merkins), and then a few minutes of Mary.

    NMS:

    As the PAX gathered in a dark but temperate morning, it was Hardywood’s declaration of his boyhood crush on Tootie from the Facts of Life that helped kick-start the morning and provide YHC yet another throwback reference to a decade he would otherwise rather forget.

    As we prepared for the Lazy Dora’s, the PAX seemed to be on top of what needed to be done. Not to be topped, our resident number cruncher TYA – beginning with the signature-phrase “I know I’m not the Q but…” – offered an alternative count for the jump squats. YHC greatly appreciated TYA’s active participation during this instruction period.

    The stair climb Merkins with a triple-check were something YHC had wanted to do for some time at MM, but logistics had been of concern. In a post-chat with Singer it was realized that the instructions could have been better administered (surprised?), and the count for WWII’s – which drive the rotation – could be tweeked some more.

    In the end, YHC intended to minimize the amount of running for those recovering from injury (Swirly dude) and pay respects to those who will be running the Bel Monte this weekend – as was demonstrated in some of his counts (16 & 34 mile). Best wishes and respect gentleman.

    Saab abides

  • Completing the Gumbo – Adding the Crawfish and Meat at the Circus

    11 strong Circus veterans posted on this beautiful Thursday morning and even the Ghost Sponsor showed himself this morning to provide a promised beatdown.  It went something like this:

    COP – SSHs, DQs, Arm Circles, Flutter Kicks, Merkins and Halos – all IC

    Ask and you shall receive (Toga requested to not have to do any KB swings for the day after this beatdown was finished) — 25 KB Swings OYO followed by 5 Burpees OYO — Repeato x 4

    Lindsay’s Revenge – As threatened/promised, YHC brought back the Lindsay’s with Merkin Rows and WWII sit and press.  Run around the Circus loop or 60 LBCs in between rounds – PAX Choice.  Add/subtract reps by 10 each round (30-10; 20-20; 10-30).

    Curb Work – Find a part of the curb for 15 tricep pullovers IC followed by 15 Alabama Honeymoon Suites (bridge – raise – pullover) OYO.

    Triple Check – Wall planks, KB Swings (extra credit for Toga and HoneyDo) and Waiter Carry to end of the sidewalk and back.

    COT – number-rama- nama-a-rama and YHC took us out.

    NMS:

    Mumblechatter was high in COP with requests, jabs and other general commentary from the peanut gallery.  YHC was happy to oblige on the request for swings and to add in a few burpees for good measure.  Interestingly, Lindsay’s revenge quieted the crowd quickly.  All PAX members, young and old, got straight to work and pounded it out.  STRONG WORK MEN!!

    YHC will admit that the wall planks are one of those things that looked better on paper than it felt in reality today.  Those things sucked and felt like they would never end.

    Unfortunately, the week of Gumbo has to end early as a last minute work schedule change will prevent Gumbo from Qing at the Creek tomorrow.  BIG thanks to MudFace for stepping up and for EHing Wild Thing to help step in for the Q tomorrow.  Gumbo will Q at the Creek soon, I promise.

    It was a great pleasure to lead another fine group this morning.  Each morning that YHC gets to join his F3 brothers for a beatdown is a great day and it is always that much more rewarding to step into the circle and execute a Q.  Thank you for the opportunity.

    No more Gumbo for you!

     

  • Rat Farts, Tomatoes & Bestiality

    13 oaks met at the Carillon for a Bleeder style beatdown. Swirly lent YHC a SF for the planting. It might have been rainy and in the 50s, but the mumblechatter from the PAX sure made it feel like it was 70 and sunny here in RVA (booya).

    COP

    25 SSH, 25 Russian Soldiers, 5/5 Arm Circles (backward, then forward), 10 Merkins, 20 LBCs

    THANG

    • Burpee Circle to Circle Dora 1-2-3: 100 Merkins, 200 American Hammers, 300 Flutterkicks. Runner goes between circles and does 1, then 2, then 3 burpees at every lightpost for each century of the Dora. Plank/AlGore between sets.
    • Triple Check @ back wall of Carillon: (1) Run to picnic tables / ha’penny stage (2) LBCs (3) BTTW
    • Bestiality Hill: First set – Alligator Walk, Bear Crawl, Crab Walk, Duck Walk :: 20 Merkins :: Second set – Alligator Walk, 20 Lt. Dans, Bear Crawl, 20 Thor’s Hammer, Crab Walk, 20 APDs, Duck Walk, 20 Ball Dippers

    Mosey back to the flag. Numberama, namearama, announcements, YHC asked Singer to take us out but YHC really did it.

    NMS:

    Apparently winning BB of the week might be about shock value of the title, so we’ll see if this one gets any play with Bleeder & Co. Great to see Honey Do out in the gloom after his late night at the Reba concert last night with his 2.0. The rain held off just long enough to get the PAX out of bed and ready for a beatdown but the skies opened during the COP and Dora. YHC could not stop thinking about the RAT FARTS! scene in Caddyshack. The PAX should be worried about Circle K’s career chances as a meteorologist … did anyone hear him scream “it’s 70 and sunny, baby!!!” in the midst of the deluge? Based on a text from Goose, he wasn’t pleased that the burpees went UP the ladder instead of DOWN.  Sorry Goose but that was the point.

    While the rain kept YHC from asking the PAX do to step ups on those massive planters out front of the Carillon, we had some math issues in building triple check teams. Maybe we can get Abacus to host a 2nd F counting event soon?

    Bestiality Hill was an on-the-fly change because some hothouse tomatoes were taking shelter from the weather in the amphitheater. Rather than force them to listen to our grunts and groans on the steps, YHC remembered Sippy’s ABCD of pain down Love Hill and thus Bestiality Hill was born.  The ABCDs weren’t getting the desired effect so adding the exercises in between sure seemed to. By the way the PAX were howling during some of those interval exercises on the second set, I’m sure the tomatoes over in the hothouse were shocked and appalled at the grunts regardless.

    YHC never sleeps well the night before a Q and last night YHC was particularly grumpy which didn’t change when getting up this morning. Even so, it’s hard to be grumpy when you pull into the parking lot and see the PAX. YHC started with his first F3 workout about two years ago on a frigid February morning at 45MOM and YHC vowed he’d never go back.  It’s been a long way to get to the point where YHC is actually Qing events but every time YHC enjoys it a little more. Shout out to the PAX for having fun in some less than ideal weather. Thanks to the PAX for following YHC and giving it your all, it’s always an honor to lead. Shout out to Swirly for keeping at it while he gets back up to full speed, way to go! Shout out to Love Seat and Bunny Slope as you guys are coming along quickly and your game is strong!

    ANNOUCEMENTS:

    Operation CSAUP
    Good luck to the Belmonte team! If you want to run in mud or be a “trash bitch”, see Toga (Ragnar).  Be sure to talk to TYA if you want to run 20+ miles on the flattest pavement the east coast has to offer (SMR).

    Thursday Lunch Crew (12PM)
    Downtown: Bleeder & Crew @ Wong Gonzalez / Pop’s Market (it’s the city, figure it out yourself)
    Boonies – Loose Goose @ Short Pump Whole Foods (come for the salad bar, stay for the tomatoes)

    HDHH @ Splinter’s 3/15: Ms and 2.0s welcome. RSVP on the sheet or you only get the burgers that fell between the grates.

    Opus’s Song: Opus wrote, recorded and shared a song about saying goodbye to his sad clown. Opus, proud of you brother for putting yourself out there like that!!!

  • Gumbo’s Hump Day at SOT

    4 strong broke from the fartsack and didn’t let the forecast for rain deter them from posting for a beatdown.  For day 3 of Gumbo’s Q week, YHC brought back a bunch of basics (aka “adding the veggies”) for gold old hump day beatdown.  It went a little something like this:

    Mosey to the tennis courts to start things off with some tennis court tracers across the 4 courts (making Lab Rat proud).  Stop at each end for 25 Donkey Kicks OYO.

    Circle up for some COP — DQs, Hillbillies, SSHs, Crab Cakes, LBCs, Merkins

    11s – box cutters and WWIIs with a run across the 4 courts in between sets

    Plank-o-Rama

    Mosey over to hill by tennis courts for the Triple Nickel as an ode to LugNut – 5 Bobby Hurley’s (slap the floor and jump squats), backwards run up the hill to the fence, perform 5 Moses Malone’s at the fence, then run (forward) back down the hill.  Repeat 5 times.

    Mosey to bus loop for Catch your Partner – one PAX bear crawls while the his partner runs the opposite direction.  Flapjack when you meet your partner – 2 rounds.

    Mosey to the school for a minute of BTTW.

    Quad Check – People’s chair, Flutter Kicks, Jump Squats and Run to the tree and back — as many rotations as we can until time is up.

    COT – number-rama, name-a-rama and YHC took us out.

    NMS:

    YHC rolled over unprovoked at 4:43 a.m. this morning and was ready to go. Day 3 of Gumbo week, time to get over the hump.  The Wilson-Honeymoon clown truck rolled in, followed closely by DK and the PAX was set.  Mumblechatter (coming out of both ends) was high this morning and the intermittent periods of wind and rain provided some extra challenges.  But the PAX pushed through.  DK crushed the 11s, leaving the rest of us in the dust.  Wilson was none to happy with YHC’s design of the catch your partner and voiced his frustration calling it a bear craw to no-where.  As punishment he left his ape-style bearcrawl hops in the truck and wouldn’t entertain the PAX with his gracefulness.  Honeymoon pushed through a head cold, but the BTTW proved to be too much pressure so a you v. you audible had to be called. All in all, a great morning and a great start to the day.  Thanks for helping YHC build the pot of Gumbo this morning men.  I appreciate the effort and fellowship.  Thanks for letting  me lead.

    No more Gumbo for you…until the Circus!

  • Kicked in the Donkey BELLS!

    6 fighters looked at the rain forecast and saw it as an opportunity instead of a barrier for a beatdown in the gloom. The shovel flag was planted and the kettle bell smack down went something like this…

    Mosey around bus loop with kettle bells held high and move toward the school entrance…

    COP – 50 SSHs, 20 sit up presses, arm circles (10 / 5 – reverse), 20 copperhead squats with kettle bells, 20 don quixotes, 20 figure eights, 50 SSHs

    Mosey to the wall to get kicked in the donkey bells…

    10 donkey kicks against the wall, lunge across the parking lot to exercise on the grass, exercise and side lunge back to the wall, repeat four times with these exercises

    • 15 halos each way
    • 30 double hand swings
    • 30 sit up presses
    • 30 overhead presses

    Run it back with some variety – 20 donkey kicks against the wall, walk across the parking lot with kettle bell held high to exercise on the grass, exercise and walk back to the wall with kettle bell held high, repeat four times with these exercises

    • 15 halos each way
    • 30 double hand swings
    • 30 sit up presses
    • 30 overhead presses

    Mosey back to the school entrance, circle up with kettle bells on the ground. Bear crawl around the circle until YHC called out to stop. Pick up the kettle bell and exercise. We did the following:

    • Stop 1 – 10 arm presses for each arm
    • Stop 2 – 15 double hand swings
    • Stop 3 – 15 double hand swings
    • Stop 4 – 10 double hand swings

    Bear crawl back to the original kettle bell.

    Mosey back to the Flag

    Numberama, Namerama, Announcements, YHC took us out

    Announcements – Ashcreek 5K (http://www.ashcreek5k.com) on May 20th, 3rd F spiritual workout (The Shining) at Rise & Shine Diner on Thursday mornings at 6:30 am.

    NMS

    YHC arrived first to review the terrain and Spit showed up next. Spit commented that he wasn’t happy about the fact that YHC was inspecting the wall. YHC’s response? “Get ready to get kicked in the donkey BELLS…” The rest of the troops rolled into the parking lot and looked like they were ready for a fight.

    The mumble chatter was light as we circled up. The first set of SSHs got the heart pumping. Then the rain started pouring down and it elicited a cheer from the PAX. The rain drops seemed to get thicker by the second and matched the enthusiasm of the circle.

    YHC admittedly adopted and adapted HoneyDo’s Groundhog Day beatdown and added some twists to keep the PAX guessing. Mudface was the only other person who had experienced that glorious morning at Circus Maximus a short month and few days ago. YHC thought that he was giving the PAX a break by switching out the lunges for walking with the kettle bells held high in between the donkey kicks and exercises. He was wrong! It increased the wear and tear on the muscles and forced the PAX to truly engage in the “you vs. you” mindset.

    There is something special about donkey kicks. They mess up the body (and mind) and that is a glorious thing!

    We all got kicked in the donkey BELLS this morning!

    Spit shared that his Q on Saturday at Dogpile will be in honor of his grandmother who passed away this week. She was almost 98 and she lived a life that was marked by loving and serving others. Faye Beach helped to inspire Spit’s faith in God and he is carrying on her legacy through his life and faith. We can all salute that and support our brother as he remembers a life lived well.

    Let’s keep pressing on together!

    The Carpenter

  • The Phil Collins (No Jacket Required)

    16 souls gathered this morning for another performance of DaVille.  Weather was 70 and dark, but only for a minute.

    COP

    • SSH
    • Copperhead Squats
    • Don Quixote (crowd pleaser style)
    • Imperial Walker- steam engine style
    • Arm Circles
    • Crab Cakes
    • LBC’s?

    THANG

    • Sitting on a park bench-  11’s using the bleachers on both ends of the Cool Springs field.  10 dips flapjack to 1 incline APD.  Subtract then add a rep to each and keep going until you hit 1 and 10 reps.  You know the drill
    • Lindsays-  Pax choice of exercises…but not burpees, you nutjobs!  Pax settled in to merkins and Freddie Mercury’s.  FM’s were mutated from 2 count up to 4 count to appease the beasts (mainly Spit).
    • Indiginous peoples run-  two lines, “The Blue Angels” and “Group B”.  Blue Angels did an extra lap around the parking lot.  Group B worked hard on not puking.  As always, burpees optional.
    • Mary-  LBC’s, flutter kicks, American hammers, heels to heaven

    Announcements

    • Happy Birthday to wild and whacky Emoji!
    • Ashcreek 5K has an F3 team!  Rumor has it The Carpenter is working on getting us a booth hook up as well, but he has not finalized the deal with YHC yet.  http://www.ashcreek5k.com/
    • HDHH for March here:  http://f3nation.com/2017/02/27/preblast-march-hdhh/
    • Thoughts and Prayers for Spit and family as they say goodbye to his Grandmother. She was 98 years young.

    NMS

    A blank space for DaVille on a Monday morning…..really?  OK, if Lab Rat is nothing else, he’s a gamer and will gladly take two DaVille Q’s in a row.  He really thought long and hard on really punishing the pax for not signing up, but he also knew that what would most likely happen is that he would punish himself more than the beasty pax that frequent the Atlee parking lot…..and that they would probably actually enjoy it.  YHC did however take away the carrot of a Lab Rat Q….no parking lot tracers for you!

    We stopped in a new spot in front of the school for the COP…right next to a drain ditch.  The Q had loads of fun yelling down into the hole and hearing his voice echo back.  It doesn’t take much to distract Lab Rat as he missed several of his stopping points on the cadence calling while enjoying his new found toy.  Lab Rat can take a hint though, so when Wheelie started yawning, he figured it was time to move on.

    The 11’s took place in an inky black area of the AO, running across a field with no lights and most of the pax wearing black.  More than a few face to face collision close calls kept the pax on their toes.  Although not up to No Toll standards, the field is in great shape, and was a pleasure to run on.  Beats the heck out of the rocky trails for once.  No noggins were harmed during the running of this exercise.

    Lindsay’s needed WAY too much explanation.  Obviously, the pax needs more practice counting by 5.  The exercises were left up to the pax to choose.  Yard Sale yelled out BURPEES!  Remind me to never attend a Yard Sale Q, he is sadistic.  Spit demanded 4 count Freddies, which is also pretty wicked, but doable.  The Q was feeling it towards the end, and really struggled to keep his feet off the ground during the American Hammers.  Check off abs for the week.

    Awesome to see a couple new’ish faces this morning.  Freezer Burn continues his freshman tear through the Mechanicsville AO’s.  Hopefully he will make it to some downtown locales soon and get to know the rest of the pax.  Also, a tip of the cap to Gum Band for posting up this morning.  YHC has met him before, but it’s been a bit.

    Well done this morning, gentlemen!  Make this day yours!

     

    Lab Rat apologizes.

  • Gumbo Week – Part DEUX — Adding the Spices – Nicole Style

    9 stalwarts, including a NoToll reunion for Swirly, broke the hold of fartsack and posted at NoToll for a beautiful Tuesday morning with a bit of a deceptive chill in the air.  Gumbo planted the flag, pronounced this his 365th day with F3 and off we moseyed to tackle the day:

    Mosey to the back parking lot for COP, all IC including:

    • SSHs x25
    • DQ x10
    • Copperhead Squats x12
    • Arm Circles x10 small and x5 big – forward and backwards
    • LBCx x25
    • Merkins x10

    Mosey to the pavilion for the main event — The Nicole as a reprise of YHC’s first ever F3 workout.  Put 20 minutes on the clock and begin with 1 lap around the field, then Derkins, 1 lap, then Dips, 1 lap, then Ball Dippers, repeat until the buzzer sounds.  Instead of doing the exercises AMRAP today, YHC wanted to keep everybody moving and PAX members were encouraged to pick a goal of 20-25 reps for each exercise and see how many laps they could complete.

    Plank-o-rama for the six, then mosey to the basketball courts for Triple Check – 3 rounds of box cutters, jump squats and bear crawl to half-court and back.

    Circle up for Ring of Fire – PAX began in Touchdown Al Gore and each dropped for 10 merkins then held plank until the rotation came around again, then 10 more merkins and return to Al Gore.

    Mosey back to the flag for COT, number-rama, name-a-rama and YHC took us out.

    Announcements –

    • HDHH at Casa de Splinter – fill out the RSVP spreadsheet and figure out directions but keep it on the DL.
    • May 19 – Fore the Cause golf tournament for Galactosemia Foundation — see Wilson

    NMS:

    So, we build the roux yesterday at River Run with the suck, so it was time to add some spices to the Gumbo in day two of Gumbo-Week.  Nicole was just the spice we needed.  YHC has been waiting to rekindle Nicole from his first workout.  Even though Rosie was on a plane to the DR for some QT with M, his presence was felt in the form of one of his fickle mistresses.

    It was great to see the Swirly-mobile and know the AO was secure when YHC pulled into NoToll.  Way to be smart but still push it today Swirly.

    HoneyDo ate his Wheaties this morning.  This man was on a mission to destroy Nicole and he did.  Way to roll HD.

    Strong work men.  It was a pleasure to lead.

    No more Gumbo for you…until tomorrow!